


Home World has Fallen

by AshKetchup98



Series: Lost Worlds [3]
Category: Original Work
Genre: Science Fiction
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-25
Updated: 2020-05-31
Packaged: 2021-03-03 04:07:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,569
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24378481
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AshKetchup98/pseuds/AshKetchup98
Summary: Back on Earth, Samantha Allen attends her father's funeral.In the sky above, something is coming.
Series: Lost Worlds [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1715125
Kudos: 2





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> For George, here's more to read

Samantha could only stare, wordlessly, at the 3 caskets in the chapel. In front of them were framed photographs of the people inside. 

The casket on the left had a photo of a young Japanese man in front of it, engraved on the bottom of the picture frame was his name; Lieutenant Tadeka Masuya. On the right was a young woman with light orange hair, the same age as Samantha, she was Ensign Jennifer Ennis.

These people were little more than strangers to her, the casket in the centre, however, held her father's body. The photo showed the grizzled man in his mid 50s that Samantha had spent her whole life admiring, striving to be like, the reason she donned the Spacefleet uniform. It was her father, Commander Joseph Allen.

These 3 caskets were all that remained of the S.F.S Athens and her crew. Back on 2nd March, a totally powered down escape pod was seen floating past Jupiter Station. The crew of the shuttle that went to meet it were shocked to find the 3 dead officers inside, and Spacefleet went on high alert when the logs left by Captain Grey and Samantha's father were discovered. 

9 days later here they were, 3 of a crew of 80 were to be given the state funeral they deserved. Samantha in particular, was devastated, her mother had died 15 years ago and now her father, the only family she had left, was gone too. Grief mixed with rage, rage directed at whatever had destroyed the Athens, whatever had killed her father. All Spacefleet knew was that it was alien, which fails to narrow it down. 

Samantha took a deep breath and composed herself. Today wasn't about revenge, it was about saying goodbye to her father.

The funeral was nice, that was the only thing Samantha could say for it. Officers that knew and served with the three deceased spoke about them, their service in Spacefleet, how they were as people. Samantha had declined to speak at the funeral when she was offered to on the first day of the arrangements, she knew her emotional state couldn't bear it. Her Captain, the one who had extended the offer from Spacefleet, was kind an understanding about it. 

That left only 2 Captains of a similar age to speak about Commander Allen. Samantha knew, from what he told her that he had 4 close, lifelong friends, but the other two, Alan and Greg, were in the interstellar fleet. She dreaded the day she would have to tell them their friend was dead.

Afterwards the 3 caskets were taken to the cemetery outside Spacefleet Command, and buried. Before her father's coffin descended, Samantha laid her hand on the oak which it was made of. "Goodbye Dad." She spoke in barely a whisper, a tear, the first she had allowed herself since his death, fell onto the casket just before it was placed into the ground. She stayed there long after the burial was complete, her father's gravestone read; Commander Joseph Allen, Exemplary Officer and Father, Born 22nd June 2148, Died 27th January 2194. 

The death date was only an estimation, aligning with his last log. Samantha knew from the final line that he died thinking about her. Her legs felt weak and she cried silently, holding herself in an embrace that she wished he was alive to give her. But now was time to finally accept he was gone. Samantha knew her father too well, and she knew he wouldn't want her to dwell on his death, but to celebrate his life.

And that's what she would do. Standing over his grave she vowed to honour his legacy, to become the finest Spacefleet officer ever.

She was interrupted from her thoughts by a hand lightly placing itself on her shoulder. She didn't have to look to know who it was. It was her friend, Ensign Michael Laurent, they had been friends since the 1st year of the academy, even graduated together in the Class of 92. He had even been her first crush, but he turned out to be gay, which was fine with Samantha because she had a gay best friend instead.

She turned to him and he gave her a gentle smile, his blue eyes full of sympathy. She could only return a weak one back and it quickly faded. 

"I'm sorry about your dad." Michael said to her, his hand gently squeezing on her shoulder, before he slowly pulled her into a hug.

"It's okay Mike," Samantha answered, muffled by his chest. She let herself cry, comforted by her friend. "I'm sorry, there's going to be tear stains on your uniform." She joked in an effort to distract herself. 

"All is forgiven Sammie." Mike chuckled lightly and let Samantha go.

"Thank you." She smiled up to him. "You always know how to make me feel at least somewhat better."

"It's a gift." Mike grinned back. 

Samantha looked back to her father's grave and leaned onto Mike. "Somewhere up there he's shooting blessings at you for being such a good friend."

Mike lightly ran his fingers through her hair and said. "Well, thank you Commander, I'm blessed." 

"Ensign Allen." A voice called from behind them. The turned and stood to attention when they saw who it was. It was their Captain, Captain Schwarz. "Please, at ease Mike, Samantha." He nodded to each of them and they relaxed. Schwarz approached Samantha and placed his hand on her shoulder. "I'm sorry for your loss, Allen. I didn't know your father that well, but by all accounts he was a great man."

"Thank you Captain, those accounts were right, he was the best." Samantha looked up at Schwarz. He was a tall man, which gave him a very commanding presence. 

The Captain stepped back and turned to Mike. "Ensign Laurent, I think it's time we got back to the Oregon."

"Yes Captain." Mike answered. 

Samantha butted in. "I'm coming too, that's where he would want me."

Captain Schwarz raised his eyebrow. "Okay Samantha, to the shuttle then." 


	2. Chapter 2

The shuttle ride back to the S.F.S Oregon was strange for Samantha. Usually she would be piloting the craft, but Captain Schwarz had very insistently given her leave until they were due to leave orbit. While she wanted nothing more than to get back to work, she understood the Captains reasoning, despite having grieved enough these past 9 days. Michael was not a bad pilot either, but going through atmosphere while not being at the controls made her slightly queasy.

Samantha was relieved when the shuttle entered the bay at the rear of the Oregon. The three of them stepped out and Schwarz turned to them. 

"Laurent, Commander Diaz wants you back in engineering, mostly final diagnostics and checks on all the systems. Allen, feel free to rest up in your quarters." His German accent got heavier when he gave orders. "Once again, I'm sorry for your loss, Samantha." The Captains voice softened.

"Thank you Captain, I'll be ready to be back at the helm when you need me." Samantha smiled. 

"Very good, Ensign." Shwarz nodded and then turned to make his way to the bridge.

Samantha walked with Michael through the ship. When they passed other crew members, all of them offered condolences to her. She thanked them all and was grateful the crew was sympathetic to what she was going through. When they reached the turning that would take Michael to engineering, they stopped. 

Michael put a hand on Samantha's arm and said. "If you need me, I'll be in engineering."

Samantha pulled him in for a hug and replied. "Thank you Mike, if I need you I'll take you up on that offer." She then released him and asked with a smirk. "Now doesn't someone need to get to work?"

Michael nodded and turned to walk to engineering. "You're not a Lieutenant yet, Sammie!" He called back over his shoulder with a chuckle. She just shook her head stifling a laugh and made her way to her quarters. 

Her quarters were little more than a cabin with a bed and desk, with a door to her shower room. A small computer terminal sat atop the desk, currently displaying the Spacefleet logo which rotated slowly on its otherwise black screen. Her bedsheets were the same grey as the metallic walls that surrounded the entire interior of the ship. She lay on her single bed and looked up at the grey ceiling, thinking about how many times her father would do this when off duty. It was always either that or research for him, he was the one that told his daughter, "Sammie, the mind never stops learning."

Samantha's eyes welled up at the memory of his voice, but she was happy. At least she would always remember all the things he taught her. It was only when she let herself fall into the soft embrace of her bed, that she realised how tired she was. Upon accepting that it was not long before the metal ceiling over her faded to black.

  
Samantha felt hot. Her ears full of the ship's red alert alarm. She stumbled to the exit of her quarters and pressed the button. The door tried to open but jammed after opening a few inches. She yelled on frustration at the door scraped to a halt, but was able to see the flickering orange light which was unmistakably fire. 

Why was the corridor on fire? Samantha asked herself, almost on cue the ship rumbled and jolted, sending her back onto her bed. She got back up and pulled the door until it groaned open. Now Samantha had a proper view, she was terrified at what she saw. The ship was wrecked, fires and bodies were everywhere. She looked down and saw someone familiar. 

"Michael!" She screamed, kneeling down to his burned, lifeless body. She held him up to her shoulder, crying while the Oregon continued to fall apart around her.

That was until she felt a presence, a familiar presence. Samantha turned around and saw a tall figure in the flames. He stepped forward and it was her father. His face looked urgent. "Sammie, wake up!"

"Dad?!" She called out, sitting up rapidly in a cold sweat. Her breaths heavy and quick.

Samantha looked around, no noise, no heat, her quarters were exactly how she left them. She took a deep breath and composed herself. She pulled back her brown hair, which had stuck to her face in the night and took a much needed shower. She dried herself and slipped into a fresh uniform, the one she wore yesterday was sweaty from where she slept in it.

Almost as soon as she was dressed, the red alert alarm sounded. Samantha froze, her mind going back to her nightmare.

"Ensign Allen." Schwarz's voice called from her terminal. "You're needed on the bridge."


	3. Chapter 3

Samantha rushed to the bridge, her earlier nightmare falling away from her since she finally had a way to be busy. That was until she entered the bridge and saw what was on the viewscreen.

It was a massive alien ship, she didn't need to look at the data, or lack thereof, to know what it was. Just looking at it filled her with dread, and anger.

"Ensign Allen, what do you make of that?" Captain Schwarz asked.

Samantha rushed to her station at the helm and saw what she knew she would see. "Sensors say nothing, like there is a 300 mile long hole in the grid, 1000 miles to starboard, but visually it's there, it's..." She trailed off, her blood was boiling. This ship and whatever crewed it destroyed the Athens, it killed her father. 

The more she looked at it in the viewscreen, the angrier she got. In the time it took to blink, Samantha had a vision of ramming the Oregon into it. This was a Reflex class ship, in the range given it could easily make it to quantum cruising speed. Maybe an object going that fast would be able to atomise that thing upon collision.

Samantha took a deep breath and composed herself. Her father had always told her "Impulse is the absence of discipline" and she was a Spacefleet officer. She was meant to be too disciplined to do something so rash.

"The alien ship that destroyed Pluto, and the Athens." Captain Schwarz finished, looking to his helm officer with concern. "Ensign?"

"I'm fine, Captain." Samantha half lied. Being this close to her father's murderers angered her, but she was ready to do her duty against them. 

"Lieutenant Olsson, tactical report?" Schwarz continued, Samantha knew he wanted to know as much as possible about what he, and the rest of the Earth, were facing. But in reality information was very limited. 

"No visible weapon placements from this distance, and I don't have scanners to help with that sir." Olsson gave an attempt at a report, his voice uneven. "All the data I have is what it was capable of at Pluto."

Schwarz nodded, trying to piece together a plan from what he had. He was a very methodical man, he did not like something that could not be learned about. And that made him uneasy.

"Also it makes me very uneasy, like a primal fear, anyone else feeling that?" Olsson continued. Samantha, the rest of the bridge crew, even the stoic Captain Schwarz nodded. 

"Maybe it's a tactic, like some kind of field? To hurt any enemy morale?" Ensign Lerone, the communications officer, guessed. 

"Maybe you're right, Lerone." Schwarz replied. 

During the discussion, the alien ship had done nothing, absolutely nothing. Samantha felt like she was being mocked. Like these aliens think they're so powerful that they can dictate how long they will let any that met them live. 

"The Earth Defence Fleet is hailing us, and every other Spacefleet ship around Earth." Lerone broke the silence that had gathered.

It was audio only. "This is Captain Barelli of the S.F.S Bismarck, Houston has ordered a planet wide evacuation. All ships not associated with the planetary defence fleet of Earth must assist them. Our fleet will engage the unknown alien vessel." On the viewscreen, Samantha looked on as the 25 ships of the fleet assembled directly between the aliens and Earth. It was composed of 15 Reflex class ships and 10 Defender classes. The largest of them was the Bismarck, larger and more powerful by half than the other Defenders. The flagship took the most forward position, a mere 100 miles in front of the aliens. 

When the communication ended, ships could be seen leaving Earth from what seemed to be everywhere that had a spaceport. They were civilian ships, some were large freight transports, most likely loaded with refugees, others were small shuttle crafts. Once the lead ships left the atmosphere, bolts of purple energy rapidly discharged from the alien ship. Those that did not hit the ships caused large explosions on the Earths surface, the ships that were hit did not have the shielding to withstand the hit. People were dying hundreds per second.

"All Spacefleet ships, this is Houston. Our civilians need protecting! Defence Fleet engage the aliens, all other ships move to protect the transports!" The communication came from Spacefleet Command. 

"We have our orders!" Schwarz told his crew. "Allen, move the Oregon to cover the transports. Olsson, ready weapons!" 

Samantha set a course and moved the Oregon to the aid of the civilian fleet. Olsson put the shields to maximum, and once the ship was in position they laid suppressing fire on the attacking ship. 

On the viewscreen she watched as the Defence Fleet engaged. Their plasma cannons barely scratched the behemoth in front of them, but it was enough to draw the alien's attention. The bridge crew on the Oregon breathed a sigh of relief as the transport ships were finally allowed to slip away. Many of them able to go to quantum speed in flashes of golden light, each golden spark represented maybe 100 or more people saved. 

The alien ship was making short work of the Bismarcks fleet, but it was enough time for all the remaining transports to escape.

"We're being hailed again by the fleet." Lerone told the Captain. 

"This is the Bismarck, we don't have much time left. All remaining Spacefleet ships are to escort the refugees. Live to fight another day." Captain Barelli told every Captain left in orbit of Earth.

"You heard him Allen. Take us out of here." Captain Schwarz told Samantha. 

She obeyed and began to take the Oregon out of Earth's orbit at sublight speed. On the viewscreen the bridge crew watched the Bismarck fire their PAC turret. The singularity opened at the very front bow of the alien ship, tearing a chunk maybe 2 or 3 miles wide out of it. The massive vessel barely relented from destroying the last of the Defence Fleet, before then charging a mass of purple energy from the hole that had been ripped into it.

Everything seemed to stand still in that moment. The aliens preparing their last attack. The Bismarck standing defiant between it and Earth, which lay vulnerable. And then the aliens shot a beam more powerful than any human had ever seen. It enveloped and vaporized the Bismarck, and then continued. The impact site was in Northern Europe, but in half a second there was no more Europe. Cracks formed, many miles wide, on the Earth's crust, exposing the mantle. Another 10 seconds later, the Earth cracked open like an egg, exploding in a ball of fire.

Earth was gone, totally destroyed, taking nearly all of its 15 billion population with it. 

The Oregon's bridge crew were shocked into silence at the sight of their home having been destroyed. The silence was broken a moment later by Schwarz. "Ensign Allen, set a course for Interstellar Station 1. Match the speed of the civillian transports." 

Samantha was silent, but followed her orders, setting the course and sending the Oregon into quantum speed. She took deep breaths, trying to calm herself. Those aliens that murdered her father were right there, in firing range, yet they barely suffered any damage. Even with the full might of the Earth Defence Fleet on them.

The Oregon would normally be able to make the journey to Station 1 within a day, without even barely hitting full quantum speed. But the civilian refugee fleet was much slower, and with so few Spacefleet ships escaping Earth's destruction, not one of them could afford to go ahead and alert the station of their situation. As a result the Oregon's crew spent the 2 week journey making repairs and running diagnostics on the ship. 

Samantha spent her work shifts in silence, making sure the course they were on was correct, several times per day. She spent her off time with Michael in the mess hall, however they barely exchanged a word. But they did find comfort in each others company.

Finally they had arrived outside Station 1, after 2 weeks in low quantum speed Samantha was just happy to see normal space again. "Station 1, this is Captain Schwarz of the S.F.S Oregon. We request immediate docking."

"Oregon, this is Station 1." A young woman responded. "You are clear for docking bay 2."

"Danke. Alert Admiral Ross I need to speak to him, as you can see we are leading a fleet of civilian ships. The reason for that is very dire." Schwarz said solemnly. Lerone ended the communication and the Captain addressed Samantha. "Dock the ship at docking bay 2." He ordered.

"Yes Captain." Samantha answered, moving the ship to the docking bay.

Once they were docked, she left her station and made her way to the airlock. "Ensign!" Schwarz called after her, but she had already left the bridge. 

When Samantha got out of the Oregon, she saw a man in his 50s at the other end of the corridor. She ran to him, he turned to face her, he frowned as if recognizing her. 

When they were face to face she said the only thing on her mind. "Earth is gone!"

"What?" The man asked in shock. 

"Destroyed, aliens, none we've ever made contact with, they came, Earth..." She trailed off, tears running down her face. 

The man in front of her paused, and then he finally figured out who she was. "You're Joe's daughter? Joe Allen?"

"Yes sir." She answered.

"Gregory Morgan." He introduced himself. "I'm a friend of his, where is he?"

"He's dead too." Samantha sighed sadly. "Killed by the same aliens that destroyed Earth."

Captain Morgan breathed in sharply. "I'm sorry, Samantha? Isn't it?"

"Yes sir." Samantha looked up at him. 

Behind her Captain Schwarz approached. "Captain Morgan," He nodded. "I need to speak to Admiral Ross, I'm sure you know by now why."

"Of course, Captain Schwarz." Morgan's tone shifted straight back to professional in an instant.

"I see you're now acquainted with Ensign Samantha Allen." Schwarz commented with a nod.

"Yes Captain, I am, I was friends with her father." Morgan answered.

"Oh." Schwarz paused, his stoic demeanour breaking once again to be sympathetic. "I'm sorry for your loss, Captain Morgan."

"I'm sure everyone that survived will need to hear that." Samantha butted in, the two Captains could only nod in agreement.


End file.
